The use of chemical fertilizers (generally made from natural gas) has increased yields but depleted soil. Comparing the mineral content of food grown in the 1940s and 1950s with that grown today, researchers in Britain, Canada and the US have all reported that levels of iron, calcium, sodium, copper and magnesium have fallen by around 50%. Soils have also lost selenium, an important antioxidant known to protect against cancer.

Prevent Cancer Now is working with Ban Asbestos Canada and a host of health, environmental and social justice groups to step up the fight to ban the Canadian production and export of chrysotile asbestos. Thanks to generous grants from the Saunders-Matthey Cancer Prevention Coalition, the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE), and the Canadian Auto Workers, we are able to support three very wise and committed high school students from Smithers, British Columbia.

The Canadian Cancer Society has appointed its new President and CEO, Peter Goodhand, who replaced Dr. Barbara Whylie in that post on May 4th. How powerfully will Mr. Goodhand advocate for primary prevention – stopping cancer before it starts? Our in-depth interview with the new CCS CEO, who comes on the scene with a good reputation for prevention, is slated to appear in the next issue of An Ounce.

The Tar Sands of northern Alberta are not just a planetary metaphor for cancer – a monstrous, toxic growth visible from outer space – but down here at ground level, they’re linked to higher rates of many cancers, including a rare bile duct malignancy.

We continue to be bombarded with consumer products containing toxic chemicals. Even though levels of these chemicals may fall into the ‘trace’ category, this doesn’t mean they’re not hazardous, despite what chemical industry representatives so often say – their products are safe and we should have no fears.